nanoshells

This interactive component is about cutting-edge medical treatments that are being developed with nanotechnology. Gold Nanoshells, demonstrates how tiny nanoparticles of gold are being used to destroy cancerous tumors. Visitors inject gold nanoshell marbles into the bloodstream and watch as the gold nanoshells are absorbed by cancerous cells. The visitor then activates an infrared laser and watches as the laser heats up and kills the tumor cells while leaving the healthy tissues unharmed.

"Treating Tumors with Gold" presents promising research being conducted at Rice University in Texas. Through videos and demonstrations, the program considers the following questions: What is a tumor and what causes it to spread? What is a gold nanoshell and how does it kill tumor cells? What does the future hold for targeted cancer therapies?

In the Nanomedicine exhibition, four individual exhibit components highlight nanotechnology’s vast potential for diagnosing and treating disease, as well as its ability to help damaged tissue regrow. Test for thousands of diseases with a single nano-based chip, target tumor cells for treatment with nanoparticles in a tabletop game, and regrow severed nerve endings on nanoscale scaffolding. These exhibits were developed by the NISE Network; copies are located at the Museum of Science in Boston, OMSI in Oregon, and the Arkansas Discovery Network.

The Nanomedicine Explorer is an interactive, updateable multimedia kiosk and media package, that is also available as a component of the Nanomedicine Exhibition. Visitors can explore a variety of topics and specific research areas in cancer nanomedicine through vivid animations and video story-telling up close with a diverse group of researchers.

To create this scanning electron microscope image, gold nanoshells were dispersed in a drop of water which then dried on a glass microscope slide. The colors are due to selective scattering of light by nanoscale particles.

Gold Nanoshells have a variety of uses in nanotechnology, and especially in biomedical applications. Nanoshells like these may play important roles in new kinds of cancer treatments, disease detection, and imaging techniques.

To create this optical microscope image, gold nanoshells were dispersed in a drop of water which then dried on a glass microscope slide. The colors are due to selective scattering of light by nanoscale particles.

Gold Nanoshells have a variety of uses in nanotechnology, and especially in biomedical applications. Nanoshells like these may play important roles in new kinds of cancer treatments, disease detection, and imaging techniques.

"Battling Cancer with Nanotechnology" is a 6-minute video that shares the research of Mauro Ferrari, a leading pioneer in the field of cancer nanomedicine. A visionary optimist, Ferrari applied his mathematical physics and engineering skills to medicine and is determined to overcome every obstacle on the way to conquering cancer's cruel reign. Dr. Ferrari's research is one of several new nanomedicine-based approaches to cancer treatment that is explored in the Nanomedicine Explorer kiosk, website and DVD (also on nisenet.org).

"Stealth Imaging with Iron Nanoparticles" is an 8-minute video that tells the research story of Ralph Weissleder and Mukesh Harisinghani, who collaborated on the design of a clinical trial to determine if an injection of specially-designed iron-oxide nanoparticles could enhance a diagnostic image produced by an MRI machine to the extent that the spread of cancer could be accurately assessed.
At least in the case of prostate cancer, as Dr. Weissleder tells our producer in this story, “The results were stunning.”

"Zapping Tumors with Gold Nanoshells" is a 9-minute video that tells the story of two Rice University researchers, physicist Naomi Halas and bioengineer Jennifer West, who came together and hatched an idea that could someday lead to relief for millions of cancer patients. But of course the road from the lab to the cure leads through many twists and turns....

The Nanomedicine Explorer is an interactive, bilingual, multimedia program and website. Visitors can explore a variety of research areas in cancer nanomedicine through vivid animations and video story-telling up close with a diverse group of researchers. Interactive features include games, polls, and options to dig deeper into the material. Fully bilingual English/Espanol. The multimedia package on DVD can also be loaded into any computer display or custom-built cabinet to augment existing health, medicine,and nanotechnology exhibits.